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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23614054">Hi Claire</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laevateinn/pseuds/Laevateinn'>Laevateinn</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>SPN's Season 15 codas and inspired stories [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Supernatural</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Angst, Coda, Episode: s13e10 Wayward Sisters, Episode: s15e12 Galaxy Brain, F/F, Grief, Hurt/Comfort, Season 15, happy reunions, present tense narration</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-04-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-04-12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-20 05:53:30</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,522</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23614054</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laevateinn/pseuds/Laevateinn</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>A glimpse into Claire's life, starting right after she looses Kaia until she gets her back (and more).</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Kaia Nieves/Claire Novak, dreamhunter - Relationship</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>SPN's Season 15 codas and inspired stories [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2014942</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>14</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Hi Claire</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hi everyone !<br/>Here is my first Dreamhunter fanfic ! I was so disappointed we didn't get to see their reunion in the episode...<br/>Anyway, for those who know me a bit, you will see I tried a new writing style. Don't hesitate to tell me what you think of it !</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <em>I came back to Sioux Falls to save Sam and Dean Winchester and I did. No, we did, we saved Sam and Dean. All of these amazing women, my family. They don’t know it yet, they think I’m staying because I’m broken but I’m staying because I need them, my family, my army. The thing that killed Kaia is still out there and I don’t care if I have to tear another whole in the universe, we’re going to find it. And I’m going to kill it.</em>
</p><p> </p><p>After she’s done writing, she climbs down the stairs and heads to the dining room. There’s a Kaia-shaped hole in her chest, but it fills up just a bit when she sees the faces of her family.</p><p>With their support, she will get revenge.</p><p>--</p><p>The next months are hard. Jody is constantly concerned about her and does very little to hide it. It’s starting to get on the young woman’s nerves. They argue more and more, and at some point Claire leaves for a month -giving regular updates, she has learnt from the past.<br/>
When she comes back, things are slightly better. She and Jody still argue -with the girls too-, she still explodes when Kaia is mentioned, but it feels like everybody is giving her a bit more space. It’s nice.</p><p>--</p><p>Almost a year has passed since the bad place. Jody has promised to include her on hunts, providing Claire doesn’t run off on her own. The arrangement is fair, and Claire follows the rules for maybe the first time in her life.</p><p>Unfortunately she’s bored and restless these days so she decides to go in a bar, with her real ID for once. That’s when she sees her. Or so she thinks. Next to the counter is a young woman who looks startingly like Kaia from behind. Claire takes a few steps towards the figure, then the later turns. Rationally, she knew it couldn’t be Kaia, but it didn’t prevent her from hoping a bit.</p><p>She goes home and cries herself to sleep that night.</p><p>--</p><p>Parting ways with  , the young hunter she met recently, she waves a last goodbye and climbs in her car. Then, she checks her phones: nothing new except for the one which number only friends and family have.</p><p>5 missed calls from Jody, a few texts from various people and one from Jody again.</p><p>
  <em>Hi Claire. You’re probably hunting and it must be why you didn’t answer. Come home as soon as you can.</em>
</p><p>Now, that was cryptic. What could have happened for Jody to call her back home like that ? Last time it happened had been because Sam and Dean had vanished and… it hadn’t ended well. Shaking her head to chase the thoughts away - as if it ever worked, really- she buckles up her seatbelt and releases the hand brake.<br/>
Just after she enters the highway, she grabs her phone and rings Jody, ignoring the little voice -strangely sounding like the sheriff- telling her it’s not safe to drive and use a phone. Of course, she doesn’t answer, it would be too easy otherwise. Finally, Jody picks up after the third call.<br/>
<br/>
</p><p>“Jody ! I got your text, I’m on my way to Sioux Fall. What’s going on ? Are you okay ?”<br/>
“I’m fine, don’t worry.”<br/>
“Of course I’m worrying !” Claire scoffs, she is family. “You didn’t say anything else than come home.”<br/>
“I didn’t want to tell you more by text.”<br/>
“What’s going on ? Are the girls okay ? Donna ?” the young woman asks, a ton of possibilities spinning inside her head.<br/>
There is a pause, then her mother figure starts to talk again “I…” “Jody !”, she interrupts.<br/>
The sheriff sighs. “ I don’t want you to drive recklessly.”<br/>
“Jody you perfectly know that if you don’t tell me, my brain is gonna try to make up scenarios and it will be worse.”<br/>
“Fine. It’s… It’s Kaia.”</p><p>This makes her tighten her hands on the wheel. “What about Kaia ? Did you catch her killer ?”<br/>
“Yes and no.” What does that even mean ? “What do you mean ?”<br/>
“Her killer kidnapped me –“ “What ? Are you okay ?”<br/>
“Yes, I told you. So she captured me and… it was the other Kaia, Claire, from the bad place.”<br/>
<br/>
Claire doesn’t speak for a few seconds. “What happened after that ?”<br/>
“She made me call the Winchesters, apparently they had promised her to send her back there. Long story short: Jack, who just came back from the dead apparently, don’t ask me, opened a portal for her because she wanted to return home before her world died.”<br/>
Half of this doesn’t make any sense, but the worst surely is the end. “Before her world died ? How is that possible?”, she asks Jody.<br/>
“God decided to erase them ? I don’t know, it’s above my paycheck. Anyway. We lead the other Kaia back there and came back with ours.”<br/>
A gleam of hope appears in the blonde’s chest. “Ours ?”<br/>
“She’s alive Claire. Kaia is alive and coming back to Sioux Falls with me.”<br/>
<br/>
For a few seconds, she doesn’t breathe, the slimmer of hope she had been felling blooming into elation. But reality crashes back and the feeling is quickly replaced by guilt, as Claire considers the implications.<br/>
<br/>
“She was alive and” the young woman starts, quickly interrupted by Jody. “Don’t do that, Claire. You couldn’t have done anything more.”<br/>
“ I should have pushed to take her body at least ! Like that we could have seen she was still alive !!” She runs her hand over her face, “Jody, it must have been a nightmare !”<br/>
“Probably.” She answers, honest as always. She had finally accepted that Claire was mature enough to hear the truth. This time though, she probably could have benefited from a white lie.<br/>
“Oh God. Jody I, I was holding her hand when she… well we thought she died. I should have known !”<br/>
“Apparently not, the other one said she was really badly injured.” Was it supposed to be comforting ? Jody cut short her musings “Listen. She’s not blaming you.”<br/>
“Really ?”<br/>
“Quite the contrary actually. She asked me if you were going to be there.”<br/>
“Really ?” Broken record, Claire.<br/>
“Yes she did. So come home and you two can talk.”<br/>
“Ok Jody.<br/>
“I’m gonna leave you now. I stopped to put some gas and buy some food but she’s still sleeping. See you soon. And don’t drive recklessly !”<br/>
“See you.”</p><p> </p><p>It seems surreal. Kaia, alive ? She wants to be happy but when has she ever had any luck ? No, she will believe it when she sees the young woman. But if it’s true… Kaia has spent years there by herself ! Guilt and remorse rapidly flow her mind, and she prepares herself for what is probably going to be a very long travel.</p><p> </p><p>--</p><p>It’s a bit more than a day later -she stopped to eat twice, and slept for barely five hours- when she finally arrives in Sioux Fall. She spends the end of the trip to Jody’s house white-knuckling the steering wheel. She doesn’t call the Sheriff, unsure of her voice at the moment, so nobody is waiting for her when she parks in front of the house. She has the time to climb down and get her duffle bag before Jody appears at the front door.</p><p>Her hunter’s mind quickly takes in her surrogate mother’s state. She seems a bit tired, and she has a reddish bruise on the left side of her face, but otherwise she seems okay. And she’s smiling.</p><p>“Claire !” she exclaims as she steps forward to greet her. “That was fast.”</p><p>The two women hug and Claire closes her eyes, happy that the other one is safe. “I took time to eat and sleep, don’t worry.”</p><p>“Okay. I trust you.” At that, a warm feeling spreads in her stomach.<br/>
Slowly, they untangle from each other and that’s when Claire sees her. The young woman is standing awkwardly in the doorway, her right hand clutching her left arm. Her brown locks partly fall on her delicate face. The girl’s radiant smile</p><p>“Kaia”, she whispers, an echo of the last time she saw her.</p><p>“Hi Claire.” The brunette answers, her smile growing up.<br/>
<br/>
Jody slowly backs away as to not disrupt them, but their world is reduced to the other girl and they don’t even see her. A few seconds later, Claire holds tight onto Kaia, and she can finally breathe.</p><p>--</p><p>The two of them are watching some classic movie on Jody’s couch. Well Kaia is, because Claire stopped caring about it around the third of the day, focusing instead on the young woman sitting next to her.</p><p>At some point, the brown skinned girl caught her staring and prompted a discussion, and now they’re sitting face to face.</p><p>“I’m not the same person anymore”, Kaia says. She seems hesitant, but hopeful.<br/>
“Me neither.</p><p>They end up closing the space between them at the same time, and when their lips find each other’s, it’s like coming home.</p><p>--</p><p>As they lay together late one night, the pale glow of the moon reflecting on Kaia’s skin, she thinks that for once she might actually be okay.</p>
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